Baler with multiple plungers

ABSTRACT

A square baler comprising a gear box configured to receive power from a rotating power source. The baler additionally comprises first and second drive shaft sections extending outwardly from generally opposite sides of the gear box. The gear box is configured to rotate said first and second drive shaft sections using power from the rotating power source. The baler further comprises first and second reciprocating plungers respectively coupled to the first and second drive shaft sections in a manner such that rotation of the first drive shaft section causes reciprocation of the first plunger and rotation of the second drive shaft section causes reciprocation of the second plunger.

CROSS-REFERNCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present non-provisional patent application claims priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/801,982, filed on Feb. 6,2019, and entitled “HIGH CAPACITY SQUARE BALER,” and to U.S. ProvisionalPatent Application Ser. No. 62/790,249, filed on Jan. 9, 2019, andentitled “HIGH CAPACITY SQUARE BALER,” with the entireties of bothabove-identified, previously-filed provisional applications being herebyincorporated by reference into the present non-provisional patentapplication.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the present invention are generally directed to highcapacity balers. More particularly, embodiments of the present inventionare directed to balers that include multiple plungers for simultaneouslyforming multiple bales of crop material.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Balers are agricultural implements that form bales (e.g., square orround-shaped bales) of crop material. Most currently available squarebalers use a single baling chamber with a single gearbox, a singleplunger, and a single knotter assembly to produce one square bale at atime. To increase baling efficiency, there is a desire to increase thecapacity of some balers to produce more bales per hour. One way toincrease baler capacity is to run the baler's plunger faster; however,due to concerns with knotter assembly reliability at high speeds,plunger speeds have maxed out at approximately one hundred revolutionsper minute. Another option to increase baler capacity is to use thickerflakes when forming the bales; however, end users of bales often objectto bale flakes being too large. Also, larger flakes can lead toinconsistent bale lengths.

These limitations have led to special hitches that pull two balers withone tow vehicle. While this solution can increase bale production, theuse of two balers negatively impacts maneuverability of the tow vehicleand/or of the balers during both field operation and transport.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided squarebaler comprising a gear box configured to receive power from a rotatingpower source. The baler additionally comprises first and second driveshaft sections extending outwardly from generally opposite sides of thegear box. The gear box is configured to rotate said first and seconddrive shaft sections using power from the rotating power source. Thebaler further comprises first and second reciprocating plungersrespectively coupled to the first and second drive shaft sections in amanner such that rotation of the first drive shaft section causesreciprocation of the first plunger and rotation of the second driveshaft section causes reciprocation of the second plunger.

In another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided amethod of forming a plurality of bales of crop material with a highcapacity square baler. The method comprises a step of receiving rotarypower at a gearbox. The gearbox includes first and second reciprocatingplungers positioned on either said of the gearbox. An additional stepincludes picking up crop material from a single windrow. An additionalstep includes providing the crop material to one or more bale formingchambers. An additional step includes using the first plunger to form afirst bale of crop material within the one or more bale formingchambers. A further step includes using the second plunger to form asecond bale of crop material within the one or more bale formingchambers.

This summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the detaileddescription. This summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter. Other aspectsand advantages of the present invention will be apparent from thefollowing detailed description of the embodiments and the accompanyingdrawing figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Embodiments of the present invention are described herein with referenceto the following drawing figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front, left-side perspective view of a baler according toembodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear, right-side perspective view of the baler from FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the baler from FIGS. 1 and 2, with aportion in front of the baler, including a chassis, removed;

FIG. 4 is a cross-section of the baler from FIGS. 1-3, taken along theline 4-4 from FIG. 3, and provided with arrows to illustrate cropmaterial flow through the baler;

FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the baler from FIGS. 1-4, providedwith arrows to illustrate crop material flow through the baler, and witha portion of the baler removed to illustrate stuffer chutes, stufferassemblies, and baling chambers of the baler;

FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of a rotor housing and a pickupassembly from the baler from FIGS. 1-5, with a rotor being positionedwithin the rotor housing;

FIG. 7 is a front, left-side perspective view of the baler of FIGS. 1-6,with portions of the baler removed and shown in dashed line, so as toillustrate crop material flowing from a left-side stuffer chute into aleft-side baling chamber;

FIG. 8 is a front, right-side perspective view of the baler of FIGS.1-6, with portions of the baler removed and shown in dashed line, so asto illustrate crop material flowing from a right-side stuffer chute intoa right-side baling chamber;

FIG. 9 is a front, left-side view of a gearbox and plungers positionedwith the baling chambers of the baler from FIGS. 1-8, with portions ofthe baler removed or shown in dashed line for clarity;

FIG. 10 is a front, right-side view of the gearbox and plungerspositioned with the baling chambers of the baler from FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a front left-side view of knotter assemblies and stufferassemblies from the baler of FIGS. 1-8 being rotationally linked viachains and sprockets;

FIG. 12 is a left-side elevation view of a portion of the baler fromFIGS. 1-8, particularly showing a bale of crop material being formed ina left-side baling chamber and a needle of a knotter assembly in alowered position; and

FIG. 13 is a left-side elevation view of the portion of the baler fromFIG. 12, particularly showing the needle in a raised position.

The drawing figures do not limit the present invention to the specificembodiments disclosed and described herein. The drawings are notnecessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearlyillustrating the principles of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description of the present invention referencesvarious embodiments. The embodiments are intended to describe aspects ofthe invention in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art topractice the invention. Other embodiments can be utilized and changescan be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.The following detailed description is, therefore, not to be taken in alimiting sense. The scope of the present invention is defined only bythe appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to whichsuch claims are entitled.

Broadly, embodiments of the present invention are directed toagricultural implements in the form of crop balers, such as baler 10illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, which are configured to simultaneouslyform two or more bales of crop material from a single windrow of thecrop material. In some embodiments, the baler 10 will be configured toform square bales of crop material, such that the baler 10 is a squarebaler.

The baler 10 may include a wheeled chassis 12 including an axle 14 and apair of laterally spaced wheels 16 that support the chassis 12 above theground. The baler 10 may additionally comprise a plurality of balingchambers 18, extending generally in a fore-and-aft direction and whichare supported on top of the chassis 12. As will be described in moredetail below, the baling chambers 18 are configured as bale formingchambers in which small, square bales of crop material can be formed.Because the baler 10 includes a plurality of baling chambers 18, thebaler 10 may be referred to as a “high capacity” baler capable ofsimultaneously forming multiple bales of crop material. In some specificembodiments, the baler 10 will include two baling chambers 18 supportedon the chassis 12 and positioned between the wheels 16. As will bedescribed in more detail below, the plurality of baling chambers 18permits the baler 10 to simultaneously form a plurality of bales of cropmaterial. In some embodiments, the plurality of bales of crop materialmay be formed by the baler 10 picking up crop material from a singlewindrow of crop material.

In some embodiments, the baler 10 may be pulled or pushed by a towingvehicle (e.g., a tractor, which is not shown in the drawings). Inalternative embodiments, the baler 10 may be self-propelled. Forexample, the baler 10 may include an internal combustion engine and anyother components necessary for the baler 10 to operate independently ofany other machine or towing vehicle. Returning to embodiments in whichthe baler 10 is pulled by a towing vehicle, the chassis 12 of the baler10 may include a forwardly-extending tongue 20, as illustrated in FIGS.1 and 2, for connecting the baler 10 to the towing vehicle. A forwardend of the tongue 20 may include a hitch for facilitating the connectionwith the towing vehicle, while a rearward end of the tongue 20 may bepivotally connected to the chassis 12. It will be appreciated that, asused herein, the terms “front” or “forward” refers to a directiontowards a free end of the tongue 20 of the baler 10, while the terms“back,” “rear,” or “rearward” refer to an opposite direction (i.e., awayfrom the free end of the tongue 20 of the baler 10). Correspondingly,the terms “left,” “left-side,” “right,” and “right-side” shouldgenerally be interpreted as corresponding to the appropriate directionswhen viewing the front of the baler 10 while positioned at the back ofthe baler 10. As such, for example, the left-side of the baler 10 isshown in the foreground of FIG. 1, while the right-side of the baler isshown in the foreground of FIG. 2. The tongue 20 is generally configuredto connect the baler 10 with the towing vehicle in a manner that allowsthe baler 10 to be positioned directly behind the towing vehicle. Assuch, the baler 10 can pick up crop material from a single windrow thatis passed over first by the towing vehicle and then by the baler 10. Assuch, the baler 10 may, in some embodiments, be configured as an“in-line” baler, as will be discussed in more detail below.

To collect crop material laying on the ground in a windrow, the baler 10may include a pickup mechanism 22, as perhaps best illustrated in FIGS.1, 3, and 4, which is supported on the chassis 12 below the balingchambers 18. In some embodiments, the pickup mechanism 22 may extenddown from the chassis 12 and may be positioned in front of the wheels16. As such, the pickup mechanism 22 may be centered about alongitudinal centerline of the baler 10, so as to permit the pickupmechanism 22 to pick up crop material within a single windrow as thebaler 10 is advanced along a path of travel by the towing vehicle (i.e.,with the path of travel extending over the path presented by thewindrow). To facilitate the collection of the crop material, the pickupmechanism 22 may comprise a tined, rotating member, which is configuredto pick up the crop material of the windrow off the ground. Upon pickingup the crop material, the pickup mechanism 22 will be further configuredto transfer the crop material upward and rearward to a rotor housing 24illustrated in FIGS. 1-5.

The rotor housing 24 may also be positioned below the baling chamber 18and is generally configured to rotatably support a rotor 26 within therotor housing 24. The rotor 26 is shown in more detail in FIG. 6. Therotor 26 may be configured to convey the crop material from the rotorhousing 24, as illustrated in FIG. 4, rearward to one or more stufferchutes 28. The stuffer cutes 28 are perhaps best illustrated in FIGS. 4,7, and 8. In some embodiments, the baler 10 may include the same numberof stuffer chutes 28 as baling chambers 18, such that crop material maybe passed from each stuffer chute 28 into a specific baling chamber 18.For example, the embodiment of the baler 10 illustrated in the figuresincludes two baling chambers 18. As such, the baler 10 of the figuresmay correspondingly include two stuffer chutes 28, with each stufferchute 28 being associated with one baling chamber 18 so as to providecrop material to the associated baling chamber 18.

Returning to the rotor housing 24 and the rotor 26, the rotor housing 24and/or the rotor 26 may be particularly configured to direct cropmaterial received from the pickup mechanism 22 generally evenly intoeach stuffer chute 28 of the baler 10. For example, as illustrated byFIG. 6, the rotor 26 may be formed as an auger with one or more augerflightings and/or toothed sections configured to direct crop materialgenerally evenly into each stuffer chute 28. In more detail, the rotor26 may comprise a spindle 30 from which is extended a first toothedsection 32, a second toothed section 34, and an interior auger-flightedsection 36 located between the first and second toothed sections 32, 34.The first and second toothed sections 32, 34 may each include aplurality of tooth elements extending outward from the spindle 30. Theinterior auger-flighted section 36 may include one or more sets ofhelically-shaped auger flightings. In some embodiments, the interiorauger-flighted section 36 may include a first set of interior flights 38configured to push crop material in a first direction and a second setof interior flights 39 configured to push crop material in a seconddirection generally opposite from the first direction. For example, thefirst set of interior flights 38 may be configured to push crop materialoutwardly toward the first toothed section 32, and the second set ofinterior flights 39 may be configured to push crop material outwardlytoward the second toothed section 34.

In some embodiments, the rotor 26 may further comprise a first exteriorauger-flighted section 40 and a second exterior auger-flighted section42 positioned on either end of the spindle 30. As such, the firsttoothed section 32 may be situated between the first exteriorauger-flighted section 40 and the interior auger-flighted section 36(e.g., the first set of interior flights 38). Similarly, the secondtoothed section 34 may be situated between the second exteriorauger-flighted section 42 and the interior auger-flighted section 36(e.g., the second set of interior flights 39). As such, the firstexterior auger-flighted section 40 is configured to push crop materialinwardly toward the first toothed section 32, whereas the secondexterior auger-flighted section 42 is configured to push crop materialinwardly toward the second toothed section 34.

To further facilitate the distributions and processing of crop material,some embodiments of the baler 10 may include a stationary separationelement 44 extending upward from a bottom panel of the rotor housing 24.In some embodiments, the separation element 44 may have a sharpenedforward edge so as to act as a blade-like dividing member for cuttingcrop material that is forced into contact with the separation element44. In some embodiments, the rotor 26 may include a gap between thefirst and second sets of interior flights 38, 39 of the interiorauger-flighted section 36, such that the separation element 44 can be atleast partly received in the gap as the rotor 26 rotates. In somefurther embodiments, the rotor 26 may further comprise a first interiortooth 46 and second interior tooth 48, which are both positioned betweenthe first and second sets of interior flights 38, 39 of the interiorauger-flighted section 36. In some embodiments, the first and secondinterior teeth 46, 48 may be spaced apart from each other so as topresent the gap between the first and second sets of interior flights38, 39 of the interior auger-flighted section 36. As such, the first setof interior flights 38 may terminate at the first interior tooth 46,while the second set of interior flights 39 may terminate at said secondinterior tooth 48. Thus, in such embodiments, the first and secondinterior teeth 46, 48 may be configured to pass on either side of theseparation element 44 when the rotor 26 is rotating.

Given the above-described rotor 26 and the separation element 44,embodiments provide for crop material provided to the rotor housing 24by the pickup mechanism 22 to be directed generally evenly to each ofthe stuffer chutes 28. In more detail, the baler 10 may, as illustratedin the FIGS. 7 and 8, include two stuffer chutes 28 and two balingchambers 18, with each stuffer chute 28 being associated with one of thebaling chambers 18. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, left-side thestuffer chutes 28 may be associated with a left-side baling chamber 18.As shown in FIG. 8, right-side stuffer chutes 28 may be associated witha right-side baling chamber 18. Each of the stuffer chutes 28 maycomprise a lower entrance and an upper exit. As such, and as perhapsbest illustrated in FIG. 4, crop material is provided from the pickupmechanism 22 into the stuffer chutes 28 via the lower entrances of thestuffer chutes 28, while crop material exits from the stuffer chutes 28(e.g., into the baling chambers 18) via the upper exits of the stufferchutes 28. In some embodiments, the lower entrance of each stuffer chute28 will be wider (or will generally have a larger internal crosssection) than the upper exit. As such, crop material introduced into thestuffer chutes 28 can be pre-compressed during travel from the lowerentrance to the upper exit in preparation for introduction into thebaling chambers 18. In some embodiments, a ratio of a width (or internalcross section size) of the lower entrance of the stuffer chutes 28 to awidth (or internal cross section size) of the upper exit of the stufferchutes is at least 1.1:1, at least 1.25:1, or at least 1.5:1, and/or notmore than 2.5:1, not more than 2:1, or not more than 1.75:1.

To evenly distribute the crop material to the stuffer chutes 28, thefirst toothed section 32 of the rotor 26 may be aligned with theleft-side stuffer chute 28, and the second toothed section 34 of therotor 26 may be aligned with the right-side stuffer chute 28. As such,when the rotor 26 is rotated (e.g., generally in a counter-clockwisedirection when viewing from the left side of the baler 10, as in FIG.4), the first and second toothed sections 32, 34 can force crop materialreceived from the pickup mechanism 22 downward below the rotor 26 andrearward into the respective stuffer chutes 28. As perhaps bestillustrated in FIG. 5, crop material that is received into the rotorhousing 24 from the pickup mechanism 22 at a location adjacent to acenter of the rotor 26 may be forced outwardly by the interiorauger-flighted section 36 towards either the first or second toothedsection 32, 34. In some embodiments, portions of the crop material willcome into contact with the stationary separation element 44 extendingupward from the bottom panel of the rotor housing 24. As notedpreviously, the separation element 44 may extend upward from generally acenter of the bottom panel of the rotary housing 24, such that theseparation element 44 extends upward into the gap presented by the firstand second interior teeth 46, 48. Thus, crop material may be cut by theseparation element 44, as the crop material is forced into thestationary element by the rotating first and second interior teeth 46,48. The resulting crop material cut by the separation element 44 canthen be forced outward by the interior auger-flighted section 36 towardseither the first or second toothed section 32, 34, so as to be providedto the respective stuffer chutes 28. Furthermore, crop material that isreceived into the rotor housing 24 from the pickup mechanism 22 atlocations adjacent to ends of the rotor 26 may be forced inwards by thefirst and second exterior auger-flighted section 40, 42 respectivelytoward either the first or second toothed section 32, 34, so as to beprovided to the respective stuffer chutes 28.

Thus, the baler 10 is particularly configured to collect crop materialfrom a single windrow and process such crop material into a plurality ofcrop streams. For example, in embodiments that include two balingchambers 18, the crop material may be provided in a first crop stream toa first of the stuffer chutes 28 (e.g., the left-side stuffer chute 28),and in a second crop stream to a second of the stuffer cutes 28 (e.g.,the left-side stuffer chute 28). As will be described in more detailbelow, crop material from the first crop stream may be transferredthrough the left-side stuffer chute 28 to the left-side baling chamber18 for formation of bales of crop material. Similarly, crop materialfrom the second crop stream may be transferred through the right-sidestuffer chute 28 to the right-side baling chamber 18 for formation ofbales of crop material.

In some embodiments, each of the stuffer chutes 28 may be associatedwith stuffer assembly 50, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, for forcing cropmaterial to flow rearward and/or upward through the stuffer chute 28from the lower entrance to the upper exit. Each stuffer assembly 50 mayinclude a base element 50(a) and plurality of stuffer forks 50(b)extending from the base element 50(a). The stuffer forks 50(b) areconfigured to extend through slots formed in forward panels of thestuffer chutes 28, such that the stuffer forks 50(b) can be caused topass along a length of the stuffer chute 28 (from the lower entrance tothe upper exit) so as to force crop material from the lower entrance tothe upper exit. As will be described in more detail below, actuation ofthe stuffer fork 50(b) of the stuffer assemblies 50 through the stufferchutes 28 may be caused by rotation of the base elements 50(a) of thestuffer assemblies 50. As was described previously, the width and/or theinternal cross section of the upper exit of each stuffer chute 28 isgenerally smaller than that of the lower entrance. As such, the cropmaterial passing from the lower entrance to the upper exit of a stufferchute 28 will experience a compressive force (i.e., a pre-compression onthe crop material exerted by sides of the stuffer chute 28) before thecrop material is provided to its associated baling chamber 18. Asillustrated in FIGS. 4, 7, and 8, the upper exit of each stuffer chute28 is in communication with a forward end of its associated balingchamber 18 (at a bottom side of the baling chamber 18), so thatpre-compressed crop material can be provided into the baling chamber 18.Each rotation of the stuffer assembly 50 may force a “charge” of cropmaterial into its associated baling chamber 18.

Upon introduction of a charge of crop material into one of the balingchambers 18, the baler 10 is configured to further compress the cropmaterial into a square bale of crop material. As illustrated in FIGS. 1,2, 4, 7, and 8, each baling chamber 18 may generally comprise anelongated chamber with a crop inlet at a forward end for receivingcharges of crop material from the associated stuffer chute 28 and a baledischarge at a rearward end from which square bales of crop material aredischarged from the baling chamber 18 and the baler 10. The crop inletof each baling chamber 18 may be positioned at the bottom of the balingchamber 18, as illustrated in FIGS. 4, 7, and 8, such that balingchambers are considered “bottom fed,” with charges of crop materialbeing provided into the baling chambers from below the baling chambers18 via associated stuffer chutes 28.

As illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10, each baling chamber 18 may beassociated with a plunger 52 configured to compressing the crop materialwithin the baling chamber 18 to form the square bale of crop material.The plungers 52 may each comprise a generally rectangular head having asize at least nominally smaller than a bailing chamber 18, such that theplunger can reciprocate within the baling chamber 18 to compact cropmaterial into a bale. In more detail, in the embodiments shown in thefigures, the baler 10 may include two plungers 52, with each plunger 52being associated with one of the baling chambers 18. Each plunger 52 maybe reciprocated within its respective baling chamber 18 between aretracted position and an extended position. In the retracted position(e.g., the solid line plunger 52 of FIG. 4), the plunger 52 may bepositioned forward of the baling chamber's 18 crop inlet, such that acharge of crop material may be introduced into the baling chamber 18from the associated stuffer chute 28. Upon introduction of the charge ofcrop material into the baling chamber 18, the plunger 52 may be actuatedrearward in a compaction stroke (e.g., the dashed line plunger 52 ofFIG. 4) so as to compress the charge of crop material into a flake of asquare bale. The plunger 52 will continue reciprocating betweenretracted and extended positions, as charges of crop material are addedinto the baling chamber 18, so as to compress crop material into a fullyformed square bale. By having multiple baling chambers 18, each beingassociated within its own plunger 52, the baler 10 is configured tosimultaneously create multiple bales of crop material, with such cropmaterial being obtained by the baler 10 from a single windrow.

In more detail, and with reference to FIG. 2, each baling chamber 18 maybe generally rectangular with a pair of sidewalls 54, a top wall 56, anda bottom wall 58. In some embodiments, the walls 54, 56, 58 may each beformed from one or more rails that are configured and/or securedtogether in a rectangular shape. As such, the walls 54, 56, 58 of eachbaling chamber 18 define an interior baling space within which theplunger 52 can extend and retract so as to compress crop material intosquare bales. The interior baling space is generally of a fixeddimension, such that each new charge of crop material received from theassociated stuffer chute 28 can be packed and compressed rearwardly as aflake of crop material against previously compacted flakes that willcollectively form a bale of crop material.

In some embodiments, a cross-sectional area of each baling chamber 18may decrease moving from a forward end to a rearward end of the balingchamber 18. Such a reduction in a cross-sectional area can facilitatethe ability of the baling chambers 18 to compress the crop material intosquare bales during formation of the bales. As such, the baling chambers18 may be configured to exert pressure on all four sides of the bales asthe bales move rearward through the baling chambers 18. Furthermore, insome embodiments, each baling chamber 18 may include an independentcompression assembly 60, as shown in FIG. 2, for aiding in compressionof the walls 54, 56, 58 of the baling chambers 18. In some embodiments,the compression assemblies 60 may be positioned near the rearward endsof the baling chambers 18. Each compression assembly 60 may include avertical compression mechanism for adjusting a vertical distance betweenthe top wall 56 and the bottom wall 58, as well as a horizontalcompression mechanism for adjusting the horizontal distance between thesidewalls 54. In some embodiments, each of the vertical and horizontalcompression mechanisms may comprise hydraulic, pneumatic, or electricalcylinders, configured to be manually or automatedly adjustable. As such,each baling chamber 18 may be configured, e.g., due to the compressionprovided by the compression assembly 60, to exert pressure on all foursides of the bales formed therein. In addition to facilitatingcompression, in some embodiments, the compression assemblies 60 may alsobe used to adjust the size of the discharge openings presented by therearward ends of the baling chambers 18. The use of independentcompression assemblies 60 with each baling chamber 18, allows for thebaler 10 to establish a set pressure on each side of a bale being formedin a given baling chamber 18 so as to minimize variation in bale lengthand density.

As noted above, the baler 10 according to embodiments of the presentinvention may include a plurality of baling chambers 18, each beingconfigured to generate individual square bales of crop material. Assuch, the baler 10 can simultaneously form multiple square bales fromcrop material obtained from a single windrow. In some embodiments, asillustrated in the figures, the baler 10 will include two spaced apart,side-by-side baling chambers 18. Such baling chambers 18 may extend in agenerally fore-and-aft direction with respect to the chassis 12. Thebaling chambers 18 may extend in a generally parallel relationship witheach other (and/or with the longitudinal centerline of the of thechassis 12 and/or the baler 10), with one baling chamber 18 positionedon one side of the longitudinal centerline of the chassis 12 of thebaler 10, and the other baling chamber 18 positioned on the other sideof the longitudinal centerline of the chassis 12 of the baler 10. Insome embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may be spaced from one anotherby not more than sixty inches, not more than forty-eight inches, notmore than thirty-six inches, or not more than twenty-four inches. Inalternative or additional embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may bespaced from one another by at least one inch, at least three inches, atleast six inches, at least twelve inches, or at least eighteen inches.Beneficially, having the baling chambers 18 spaced apart can make itsimpler to implement mechanisms that handle, accumulate, and/or sortbales that are formed in and dispensed from the baling chambers 18.

In alternative embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may not be spacedapart from each other. For example, the baling chambers 18 may beseparated by (or share) a common interior wall, such that no air gapexists between the baling chambers 18. For example, the common interiorwall may comprise the interior sidewall 54 of the adjacent balingchambers 18, such that the baling chambers 18 are not spaced apart. Insome embodiments, an entire length of the baling chambers 18 may beseparated by the common interior wall.

In some further embodiments, the baling chambers 18 may not be separatedby any interior walls. For example, four walls (e.g., a pair ofsidewalls 54, a top wall 56, and a bottom wall 58) may define a commoninterior baling space that includes two baling chambers 18. As such, thetwo baling chambers 18 can share a common interior baling space so thattwo bales can be simultaneously formed within the common interior balingspace.

As was noted above, each of the baling chambers 18 may include a plunger52 for compacting crop material in the baling chamber 18 to form asquare bale of crop material. In an embodiment of the baler 10 thatinclude two baling chambers 18, as shown in the figures, the baler 10may include two plungers 52 (See, e.g., FIGS. 9 and 10). In suchembodiments, the plungers 52 may be driven, directly or indirectly, by acommon gearbox 70, which is illustrated in FIGS. 1-4, 9, and 10. Thegearbox 70 may be supported on top of the chassis 12 and positionedadjacent to the front of the chassis 12. As such, a rotating powersource, such as power take-off 72 from the tow vehicle (See, e.g., FIGS.1 and 2), may be engaged with the gearbox 70 to provide rotary powerfrom the tow vehicle to the baler 10. As illustrated in FIG. 1, thegearbox 70 may comprise an input element 73, which is configured to berotated by the rotating power source, e.g., the power take-off 72, aboutan input axis of rotation so as to provide rotational power to thegearbox 70. The baler 10 may additionally include a flywheel 74positioned between the gearbox 70 and the power take-off 72, which isconfigured to store rotational energy for provision to the gearbox 70 asnecessary. In some alternative embodiments, the baler 10 may include arotating power source in the form of a hydraulic pump/motor (not shown).The hydraulic pump/motor may, in some embodiments, itself be engagedwith the power take-off 72 to receive power from the tow vehicle.Regardless, the gearbox 70 may be connected with the pump gearbox toreceive rotary power therefrom.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 3, 9, and 10, the gearbox 70 maycomprise a first drive shaft section 76 extending outward from a firstside (e.g., a left side) of the gearbox 70, and a second drive shaftsection 78 outward from a second side (e.g., a right side) of thegearbox 70. As such, the first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78may extend outwardly from generally opposite sides of the gearbox 70.The first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78 may be configured torotate on respective first and second drive shaft axes of rotation. Incertain embodiments, each of the first and second drive shaft axes ofrotation is angled relative to the input axis of rotation of the gearbox70 (as presented by the input element 73) between sixty and one-hundredtwenty degrees, between seventy and one-hundred degrees, or betweeneighty and one hundred degrees. In some embodiments, the first andsecond drive shaft axes of rotation may be skewed. In other embodiments,the first and second drive shaft axes of rotation may be parallel orcolinear. For example, the first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78may be configured to rotate on a common substantially horizontal axis ofrotation. The gearbox 70 may further include a common drive shaftextending through the gearbox 70 and comprising the first and seconddrive shaft sections 76, 78.

In general, the gearbox 70 is configured as a rotating power source thatis used to rotate the first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78 usingpower from the external rotating power source, e.g., the power take-off72. In some embodiments, the gearbox will be configured to rotate thefirst and second drive shaft sections 76, 78 at generally equal speeds(i.e., at equivalent rates of rotation). In embodiments of the baler 10that include two plungers 52, as illustrated in FIGS. 3, 9, and 10, aleft-side plunger 52 may be coupled to the first drive shaft section 76,while a right-side plunger 52 may be coupled to the second drive shaftsection 78. As such, the left-side plunger 52 may be positioned on anopposite side of the gearbox 70 as the right-side plunger 52. Asillustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10, each of the drive shaft sections 76, 78may be connected to a respective plunger 52 via a connecting element 80that is pivotally connected between the plunger 52 and respective onesof the drive shaft sections 76, 78 so as to transfer the generallycircular movement of the drive shaft sections 76, 78 to reciprocationactuations of the plungers 52. To further facilitate such reciprocatingactuation, each plunger 52 may include an elongated connection arm, witha first end pivotally connected to the head of the plunger 52 and asecond end pivotally connected to the connecting element 80.

Under power from the gearbox 70, rotation of the first drive shaftsection 76 will cause reciprocation of the left-side plunger 52 androtation of the second drive shaft section 78 will cause reciprocationof the right-side plunger 52. As was described previously, each of theplungers 52 is configured to reciprocate between the extended positionand the retracted position. The gearbox 70 may, in some embodiments, beconfigured to actuate the plungers 52, such that the left-side andright-side plungers 52 are reciprocated in an alternative fashion. Assuch, when the left-side plunger 52 is in the extended position, theright-side plunger 52 is in the retracted position, and vice versa. Suchpositioning may be facilitated by the connecting elements 80 beingorientated generally one-hundred eighty degrees out of phase (in certainembodiments with two plungers 52). For instance, as shown in FIGS. 9 and10, the left-side connecting element 80 is orientated rearward such thatthe left-side plunger 52 is in the extended position, while theright-side connecting element 80 is orientated forward such that theright-side plunger 52 is in the retracted position. Alternatively,although not shown in the drawings, the right-side connecting element 80can be orientated rearward such that the right-side plunger 52 is in theextended position, while the left-side connecting element 80 can beorientated forward such that the left-side plunger 52 is in theretracted position. The plungers 52 being offset can allow for thespreading of drive loads and allows for smaller drive components.

In some embodiments, a point of connection between the left-side plunger52 and the left-side connecting element 80 will be spaced from the axisof rotation of the first drive shaft section 76, such that theconnection may be eccentrically shaped (i.e., the connecting element 80may be an eccentric connection). In some embodiments, the first driveshaft section 76 may terminate at the left-side connecting element 80.In addition, in some embodiments, the point of connecting between theright-side plunger 52 and the right-side connecting element 80 will bespaced from the axis of rotation of the second drive shaft section 78,such that the connection may be eccentrically shaped (i.e., theconnecting element 80 may be an eccentric connection). In someembodiments, the second drive shaft section 78 may terminate at theright-side connection element 80.

As was briefly noted above, in some embodiments, the left-side andright-side connecting elements 80 may be rotationally offset from oneanother with respect to the rotation of the first and second drive shaftsections 76, 78. In some specific embodiments, the left-side andright-side connecting elements 80 may be rotationally offset from oneanother by about one-hundred eighty degrees, about one-hundred twentydegrees, or about ninety degrees with respect to the axes of rotation ofthe first and second drive shaft sections 76, 78. In other embodiments,the left-side and right-side connecting elements 80 may be rotationallyaligned with one another with respect to the axes of rotation of saidfirst and second drive shaft sections 76, 78. In further embodiments,the relative rotational positioning of the left-side and right-sideconnecting elements 80 with respect to the rotation of said first andsecond drive shaft sections 76, 78 may either be i) aligned with oneanother or ii) offset from one another by an amount of rotationaldegrees approximately equal to three-hundred and sixty divided by thetotal number of reciprocating plungers 52 included in the baler 10.Thus, in embodiments of the baler 10 that include two plungers 52, therelative rotational positioning of the left-side and right-sideconnecting elements 80 with respect to the rotation of said first andsecond drive shaft sections 76, 78 may be about one-hundred and eightydegrees. Nevertheless, it should be understood that in some embodiments,the baler 10 may include more than two plungers 52, such that theconnecting element 80 may be offset by different magnitudes.

In some further embodiments of the gearbox 70, the first drive shaftsection 76 may include an auxiliary drive shaft 84, as perhaps bestillustrated in FIGS. 3 and 9, which extends outwardly from and/or pastthe left-side connecting element 80. In alternative embodiments, theauxiliary drive shaft 84 may be included as part of the second driveshaft section 78 and may extend outwardly from and/or past the left-sideconnecting element 80. In further alternatives, the gearbox 70 mayinclude a pair of auxiliary drive shafts 84, with one associated witheach of the first drive shaft section 76 and the second drive shaftsection 78. The baler 10 may comprise at least one auxiliary drivenmechanism directly or indirectly powered by the auxiliary drive shaft84. For example, such an auxiliary driven mechanism may comprise thepickup mechanism 22, the rotor 26, the stuffer assemblies 50, and/or oneor more knotter assemblies (described in more detail below). The baler10 may include one or more chains, belts, or the like that interconnectgears, sprockets, pulleys, etc. associated with the auxiliary driveshaft 84 and the auxiliary driven mechanisms. As such, the auxiliarydrive shaft 84 can provide power (e.g., rotary power) to the auxiliarydriven mechanisms.

For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, a distal end of the auxiliarydrive shaft 84 may include a sprocket, which rotates simultaneously withthe auxiliary drive shaft 84. A chain may connect the sprocket of theauxiliary drive shaft 84 with a drive input assembly 86 associated withone of the stuffer assemblies 50 (e.g., the left-side stuffer assembly50), as illustrated in FIG. 1. The drive input assembly 86 may include asprocket that can be engaged with the chain extending from the sprocketof the auxiliary drive shaft 84. As such, the drive input assembly 86may be configured to receive rotary power from the auxiliary drive shaft84. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the drive input assembly 86 may beconnected to the base element 50(a) of one of the stuffer assemblies 50(e.g., the left-side stuffer assembly 50) via a connection element. Assuch, rotation of the drive input assembly 86 (as caused by theauxiliary drive shaft 84) will provide a corresponding rotation to thebase element 50(a) of the left-side stuffer assembly 50, therebypowering the left-side stuffer assembly 50 for operation.

As described above, in certain embodiments, the baler 10 may include twostuffer assemblies 50. In some of such embodiments, one of the stufferassemblies 50 (e.g., the left-side stuffer assembly 50) may be connectedwith the other stuffer assembly 50 (e.g., the right-side stufferassembly 50), such that rotation of the left-side stuffer assembly 50will cause a corresponding rotation of the right-side stuffer assembly50. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the left-side and right-sidestuffer assemblies 50 may be interconnected by a connection element 87that permits a rotation of one of the left-side or right-side stufferassemblies 50 to cause a rotation of the other of the left-side orright-side stuffer assemblies 50. For instance, as discussed above, theauxiliary driveshaft 84 may provide rotational power to the left-sidestuffer assembly via the drive input assembly 86. Such rotation of theleft-side stuffer assembly 50 may cause a corresponding rotation of theright-side stuffer assembly via the connection element 87. In someadditional embodiments, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the base element50(a) of the right-side stuffer assembly 50 may be connected to a driveoutput assembly 88 via a connection element. As will be described inmore detail below, the drive output assembly 88 may be used to providerotary power to other components of the baler 10.

Some embodiments provide for the left-side and right-side stufferassemblies 50 to be offset by one-hundred and eighty degrees. As such,for instance, when the left-side stuffer assembly 50 is in an upward ortop position, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 will be in the lower orbottom position. In addition, the position of the stuffer assemblies 50may, in some embodiments, correspond with the positions of the plungers52. For example, when the left-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the upwardor top position, the left-side plunger 52 will be in the retractedposition, such that crop material may be fed into the left-side balingchamber 18 by the left-side stuffer assembly 50. In such aconfiguration, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 will be in a lower orbottom position and the right-side plunger 52 will be in the extendedposition. As such, when the left-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the topposition, the left-side plunger 52 will correspondingly be in theretracted position, such that crop material may be fed into theleft-side baling chamber 18 from the left-side stuffer chute 28 by theleft-side stuffer assembly 50 in preparation for compression stroke bythe left-side plunger 52 to form a compacted square bale within theleft-side baling chamber 18.

From the configuration discussed above, the gearbox 70 can rotate thestuffer assemblies 50, e.g., via the connection (e.g., the chains andsprockets) between the auxiliary drive shaft 84 and the stufferassemblies 50 (e.g., via the drive input assembly 86), such that theright-side stuffer assembly 50 is shifted to the top position and theleft-side stuffer assembly 50 is shifted to the bottom position. Duringsuch actuation, the gearbox 70 can simultaneously shift the right-sideplunger 52 (e.g., via the second drive shaft element 78) to theretracted position and the left-side plunger 52 (e.g., via the firstdrive shaft element 76) to the extended position. As such, when theright-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the top position, the right-sideplunger 52 will correspondingly be in the retracted position, such thatcrop material may be fed into the right-side baling chamber 18 by theright-side stuffer assembly 50 in preparation for compression stroke bythe right-side plunger 52 to form a compacted square bale within theright-side baling chamber 18. In such a configuration, the left-sidestuffer assembly 50 will be in the bottom position and the left-sideplunger 52 will be in the extended position. As such, while theright-side plunger 52 is compacting crop material to form a bale, theleft-side stuffer assembly 50 is in the downward position preparing tocollect and push crop material upward through the left-side stufferchute 28 once the left-side plunger 52 has been retracted.

In some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 1, the auxiliary drive shaft 84may be further connected with the rotor 26 (e.g., via chain andsprockets), such that rotation of the auxiliary drive shaft 84 willcause actuation of the rotor 26 within the rotor housing 24. Similarly,in some embodiments, the auxiliary drive shaft 84 may be connected withthe pickup mechanism 22 (e.g., via chain and sprockets), such thatrotation of the auxiliary drive shaft 84 will cause actuation of thetined rotating member of the pickup mechanism 22. Alternatively, asshown in FIG. 2, the pickup mechanism 22 may be interconnected with therotor 26 (e.g., via chain and sprockets), such that rotation of therotor 26 (e.g., as perhaps caused by the auxiliary drive shaft 84) maycause a corresponding rotation of the tined rotating member of thepickup mechanism 22.

In addition to the auxiliary driven mechanisms discussed above, someembodiments of the baler 10 may include a plurality of knotterassemblies 90, as shown in FIGS. 1-3 and 11-13, for tying one or moresecurement lines (e.g., twine, wire, cord, etc.) around the square balesof crop material being formed in the baling chambers 18. In someembodiments, the baler 10 may include one knotter assembly 90 for eachbaling chamber 18, such that each bale of crop material may be wrappedand tied with securement lines. In some embodiments, each knotterassembly 90 may include a pair of knotting mechanisms 92, as illustratedin FIGS. 2, 3, and 11, each configured to wrap and tie a securement linearound each square bale formed in the associated baling chamber 18. Forinstance, the left-side knotter assembly 90 may include a pair ofknotting mechanisms 92, and the right-side knotter assembly 90 mayinclude a pair of knotting mechanisms 92. As such, in some embodiments,the baler 10 may provide for each bale of crop material formed in eachbaling chamber 18 to be tied with two securement lines. Each knottingmechanism 92 may include the components necessary to apply a securementline around a bale of crop material and to securely tie/knot thesecurement line onto the bale. For example, each knotting mechanism 92may include: a knotter disc, a billhook assembly (e.g., a billhook, abillhook spring, a billhook cam, a billhook pinion), strand holder,strand knife, etc. Each knotter assembly 90 may include a rotatableshaft 93, which may be configured as an axle, and which is configuredactuate various of the components of the associated knotting mechanisms92. As such, the left-side knotter assembly 90 may include one rotatableshaft 93, and the right-side knotter assembly may include one rotatableshaft 93.

In addition, each of the knotter assemblies 90 may include one or moreneedles 94, as illustrated in FIGS. 11-13, operably associated with eachknotting mechanism 92. Each of the needles 94 may be used to wrap asecurement line completely around a bale of crop material once the baleis fully formed, such that the associated knotting mechanism 92 can tiethe securement line securely around the fully formed bale. FIG. 12illustrates a needle in a lowered position, holding a securement linebelow a bale as the bale is being formed in the baling chamber 18. Thesecurement line may be obtained from a spool of securement line held inan un-shown container or compartment of the baler 10. FIG. 13illustrates the needle 94 in a raised position, such that the needle 94brings the securement line up to the knotting mechanism 92 for tying offaround the bale. Upon the needle 94 being lowered from the raisedposition, the needle 94 will start a subsequent strand of securementline around the subsequently-formed bale. It should be understood thatFIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate a single knotting mechanism 92 and a singleneedle 94, which can be used to wrap and tie a single securement linearound a bale. However, as was noted above, each knotter assembly 90 mayinclude a plurality of knotting mechanisms 92 and a correspondingplurality of needles 94, such that each knotter assembly 90 can beconfigured to wrap and tie a plurality of (e.g., two) securement linesaround a bales being formed in a baling chamber 18.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, each knotter assembly 90 mayadditionally comprise a trip mechanism 96 that can be used to initiatethe tying process once a bale of crop material has been fully formed.With reference to FIGS. 12 and 13, each trip mechanism 96 may include astarwheel 98, a measuring assembly 100, and a clutch mechanism 104configured to permit associated knotting mechanisms 92 to tie a knotaround a bale of crop material upon the bale being formed to apre-selected size. In more detail, the starwheel 98 may be configured toengage a top surface of a bale of crop material as the bale is beingformed within the baling chamber 18. Specifically, the starwheel 98 isconfigured walk along a top surface of the bale, such that the starwheel98 rotates about a shaft 106 as the bale moves rearward through thebaling chamber 18. The shaft 106 may be operably engaged with themeasuring assembly 100, which comprises a notched arc and a pair of triparms. As the starwheel 98 rotates, the shaft 106 will engage with thenotched arc, so as to actuate the trip arms. The trip arms can beoperably connected to the clutch mechanism 104. The clutch mechanism 104may include a sprocket 105 that is constantly driven, directly orindirectly as will be discussed in more detail below, by the auxiliarydrive shaft 84 of the gearbox 70. Embodiments provide for the clutchmechanism 104 to be selectively engaged so as to drive the rotatableshaft 93 and, thus, the knotting mechanisms 92 of the associated knotterassembly 90. In addition, the clutch mechanism 104 may also be operablyconnected to a needle frame 108 that supports the needles 94 of theassociated knotter assembly 90, such that the selective engagement ofthe clutch mechanism 104 will actuate the needle frame 108 and theneedles 94 thereon from the lowered position (e.g., FIG. 12) to theraised position (e.g., FIG. 13). It should be understood that althoughFIGS. 12 and 13 illustrate the left-side knotter assembly 90 with theleft-sided trip mechanism 96 discussed above, the right-side knotterassembly 90 includes a right-side trip mechanism 96 with generally thesame components and that functions in generally the same manner as theleft-sided trip mechanisms 96.

Embodiments provide for the trip mechanism 96 of each knotter assembly90 to be particularly configured (e.g., due to a size of the starwheel98 and/or to additional configurations of the measuring assembly 100) soas to initiate the tying of knots of the securement lines by eachknotting mechanism 92 of the knotter assembly 90 once a bale has beenfully formed to the appropriate size (e.g., the appropriate length).Broadly, the measuring assembly 100 will be configured to measure a sizeand/or length of bales being formed in the baling chambers 18. In moredetail, as a bale of crop material is being formed in a baling chamber18 (i.e., via the cyclical compressions of flakes of crop material bythe reciprocating plunger 52), the bale will travel rearward through thebaling chamber 18. In embodiments in which each knotter assembly 90includes two knotting mechanisms 92, each knotting mechanism 92 willhold a securement line, such that the two securement lines will extenddownward through the baling chamber 18 to tips of the respective needle94. As the bale travels rearward, the two securement lines will wrapagainst a rear surface of the bale, as well as over a top and bottom ofthe bale, as illustrated in FIG. 12. During such travel, the starwheel98 will walk along the top surface of the bale until the pre-determinedbale length has been reached (e.g., as configured by the measuringassembly 100). At such time, the measuring assembly 100 will engage theclutch mechanism 104 so as to simultaneously cause rotation of the shaft93 and actuation of the needle frame 108. Specifically, as shown in FIG.13, the needle frame 108 will be actuated so as to force the pair ofneedles 94 upward, each bringing their securement line upward around afront side of the bale and adjacent to a corresponding knottingmechanism 92 that will tie the securement line securely onto the bale.The securement lines will be cut, so as to similarly allow for anothersecurement line to be wrapped around and securely tied to asubsequently-formed bale of crop material. Upon being wrapped with thesecurement lines, the formed bale can be ejected from bale discharge atthe rear end of the baling chamber 18.

In some alternative embodiments, the baler 10 may include tripmechanisms 96 that comprise electronic measuring assemblies that mayinclude electrical and/or electro-mechanical components. For example,each starwheel 98 may be associated with an electronic sensor formeasuring a length of the bale passing through the relevant balingchamber 18. The electronic sensor may be a rotary encoder, an opticalsensor, or the like. The electronic sensor may measure the length of thebale passing through the associated baling chamber 18, and the resultingbale length data may be provided to an electronic control unitpositioned on the baler 10 or on the tow vehicle The electronic controlunit may include memory elements and processing elements configured toanalyze the bale length data for a bale and to send resultinginstructions to the clutch mechanism 104 upon the bale reaching apre-determined bale length. In more detail, the electronic sensor mayobtain bale length data for a given bale and may provide such balelength data to the electronic control unit. Upon the electronic controlunit determining from the bale length data that the given bale hasreached a fully-formed length (as may be pre-determined/pre-defined),the electronic control unit may send a signal or instruction to theclutch mechanism 104 to cause actuation of the knotting mechanisms 92and related needles 94 so as to tie off securement lines around thefully formed bale. In embodiments in which the baler 10 includesmultiple baling chambers 18 (each having its own starwheel 98 and clutchmechanism 104), each starwheel 98 may include its own electronic sensorfor measuring the lengths of the bales being formed in its associatedbaling chamber 18. The electronic control unit may receive bale lengthdata from each electronic sensor and may send independent instructionsto each clutch mechanism 104 to tie off the bales in each baling chamberonce each bale has been fully formed to the pre-determined bale length.

Beneficially, the knotter assemblies 90 of the baler 10 are configuredto operate independently of one another. As such, the bales being formedin each of the baling chambers 18 can be wrapped and tied at differenttimes, when the bales have been fully formed. For example, if two balesare being formed in the baler 10, one in the left-side baling chamber 18and one in the right-side baling chamber 18, the left-side knotterassembly 90 can tie off the securement lines around the bale beingformed in the left-side baling chamber 18 when the bale is fully formed(i.e., to the predetermined bale length), and the right-side knotterassembly 90 can tie off the securement lines around the bale beingformed in the right-side baling chamber 18 when the bale is fully formed(i.e., to the predetermined bale length). However, because such balesmay become fully formed at different times, e.g. due to variations inthe amount of crop material being provided to the individual balingchambers 18, the knotter assemblies 90 associated with each balingchamber 18 may initiate tying of the securement lines at differenttimes. As such, the baler 10 can be prevented from tying of short (orlong) bales, which can create problems with stacking, transporting, andretailing of such bales. The independent operation of the knotterassemblies 90 will be described in further detail below.

In operation, the baler 10 described above may be configured tosimultaneously produce multiple bales of crop material from a singlewindrow. The number of bales that may be simultaneously formed by thebaler 10 is at least partly dependent on the number of baling chambers18 included in the baler 10. As discussed above, the baler 10 mayinclude a plurality of baling chambers 18. The embodiments shown in thedrawings illustrate the baler 10 including two, inline baling chambers18. However, it should be understood that certain embodiments of thebaler 10 may include more than two baling chambers 18 (e.g., three,four, five, six, or more). In general, the baler 10 will be equippedwith a number of stuffer chutes 28, stuffer assemblies 50, plungers 52,and knotter assemblies 90 that corresponds with and/or that is equal tothe number of baling chambers 18. As such, the baler 10 will beconfigured to adequately provide crop material to each of the balingchambers 18 to create the bales of crop material.

The following example illustrates a baler 10 with a pair of balingchambers 18, which can be used to simultaneously form multiple squarebales of crop material. As the baler 10 is pulled along its path oftravel by the tow vehicle, the pickup mechanism 22 can pick up cropmaterial from a single windrow of crop material. Particularly, theplurality of tines extending from the rotating member of the pickupmechanism 22 functions to pick up the crop material from the ground andto force the crop material upwardly and rearwardly to the rotor housing24, with such flow of crop material illustrated by the arrows of FIGS. 4and 5. From the rotor housing 24, the separation element 44 and therotor 26 (e.g., due to the specific configurations of the augerflightings and/or toothed sections) are configured to separate the cropmaterial into multiple streams for provisioning to the stuffer chutes28. In the exemplary embodiment, the baler 10 may include two stufferchutes 28, such that the separation element 44 and the rotor 26 areconfigured to separate the crop material into two generally equalstreams of crop material and to provide one stream to each of therespective stuffer chutes 28 (e.g., the left-side and the right-sidestuffer chutes 28).

While the crop material is in the stuffer chutes 28, the stufferassemblies 50 of the stuffer chutes 28 will function to propel the cropmaterial rearward and upward from the lower entrances of the stufferchutes 28 to the upper exits of the stuffer chutes 28, as illustrated inFIG. 4. As the crop material is propelled rearward and upward, the cropmaterial will also be pre-compressed due to the restricting size of thestuffer chutes 28. Upon the crop material reaching the upper exits ofthe stuffer chutes 28, the stuffer assemblies 50 will force charges ofthe crop material into the baling chambers 18. As was previouslydescribed, the two stuffer assemblies 50 may be offset by one-hundredand eighty degrees and may both be driven by the gearbox 70, such thatthe rotation of the stuffer assembles 50 are synchronized with theplungers 52 (which are also driven by the gearbox 70).

As such, in the embodiment of the baler 10 illustrated in the drawings(i.e., with two stuffer chutes 28, two stuffer assemblies 50, two balingchambers 18, and two plungers 52), the left-side stuffer assembly 50 canbe rotated upward, due to actuation caused by the gearbox 70, so as toforce a charge of crop material from into the crop inlet of theleft-side baling chamber 18 (with the crop inlet being positioned on abottom/forward side of the left-side baling chamber 18) while theleft-side plunger 52 is in a retracted position. In such aconfiguration, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 will be in a loweredposition and the right-side plunger 52 will be in an extended position.With a charge of crop material being added into the left-side balingchamber 18, the gearbox 70 can actuate the left-side plunger 52 to theextended position to compress the charge of crop material into flake ofa bale of crop material. Such extension of the left-side plunger 52 willbe accompanied, due to actuation caused by the gearbox 70, by a shiftingof the right-side plunger 52 from the extended position to the retractedposition. Simultaneously, the right-side stuffer assembly 50 can berotated upward, due to actuation caused by the gearbox 70, so as toforce a charge of crop material into the crop inlet of the right-sidebaling chamber 18 (with the crop inlet being positioned on abottom/forward side of the right-side baling chamber 18) while theright-side plunger 52 is in a retracted position. With a charge of cropmaterial being added into the right-side baling chamber 18, the gearbox70 can actuate the right-side plunger 52 and can be extended to compressthe charge of crop material into flake of a bale of crop material. Suchactions can be repeated in a cyclical manner, as driven by the gearbox70, so as to simultaneously form square bales of crop material in eachof the left-side and right-side baling chambers 18.

As the bales are moving through each of the baling chambers 18 (e.g.,the left-side and right-side baling chambers), the knotter assemblies 90are configured to wrap and tie securement lines securely around thebales so as to hold the flakes of the bales together. Specifically, aleft-side knotter assembly 90 may use its pair of knotting mechanisms 92to wrap a pair of securement lines around the bales of crop materialpassing rearward through the left-side baling chamber 18. Upon the balereaching the predetermined length, the trip mechanism 96 of theleft-side knotter assembly 90 may cause the pair of needles 94 and thepair of knotting mechanisms 92 of the left-side knotter assembly 90 toactuate to complete the wrapping of the securement lines around the balepassing rearward through the left-side baling chamber 18 and to tie offthe securement lines securely onto the bale. Similarly, a right-sideknotter assembly 90 may use its pair of knotting mechanisms 92 to wrap apair of securement lines around the bales of crop material passingrearward through the right-side baling chamber 18. Upon the balereaching the predetermined length, the trip mechanism 96 of theright-side knotter assembly 90 may cause the pair of needles 94 and thepair of knotting mechanisms 92 of the right-side knotter assembly 90 toactuate to complete the wrapping of the securement lines around the balepassing rearward through the right-side baling chamber 18 and to tie offthe securement lines securely onto the bale.

As was noted previously, the left-side and right-side knotter assemblies90 may operate independently and at different times. To facilitate suchindependence, certain embodiments provide for the gearbox 70 toindependently provide rotational power to each of the knotter assemblies90. For example, in some embodiments, the auxiliary drive shaft 84extending from the lift-side of the gearbox 70 may be connected (e.g.,via chain and sprocket) to the sprocket 105 of the clutch mechanism 104of the left-side knotter assembly 90. The sprocket 105 can, thus, beconstantly driven by the auxiliary drive shaft 84 of the gearbox 70,such that the rotatable shaft 93 of the left-side knotter assembly canbe actuated (in addition to the needles 94 of the left-side knotterassembly 90) when engaged by the clutch mechanism 104 upon command fromthe measuring assembly 100 of the left-side knotter assembly 90. Certainembodiments may provide for the right-side knotter assembly 90 to bedriven in a similar manner by a second auxiliary drive shaft (not shown)extending from a right-side of the gearbox 70, such that the left-sideand right-side knotter assemblies 90 may operate independently and atdifferent times.

Alternatively, as illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 11, each of theleft-side and right-side knotter assemblies 90 may be independentlydriven by the auxiliary drive shaft 84 extending from the lift-side ofthe gearbox 70. Specifically, the auxiliary drive shaft 84 may beconnected (e.g., via chain and sprockets) with the drive input assembly86 so as to provide rotational power to the stuffer assemblies 50. Insome embodiments, the drive input assembly 86 may include an additionalsprocket for connecting (e.g., via a chain) with the sprocket 105 of theclutch mechanism 104 of the left-side knotter assembly 90, so as toprovide rotational power to the left-side knotter assembly 90. Inaddition, the rotational power provided to the stuffer assemblies 50 viathe drive input assembly 86 will cause a corresponding rotation of thedrive output assembly 88 on the right-side of the baler 10. The driveoutput assembly 88 may be connected (e.g., via chain and sprocket) withthe sprocket 105 of the clutch mechanism 104 of the right-side knotterassembly 90, so as to provide rotational power to the right-side knotterassembly 90. Thus, both the left-side and right-side knotter assemblies90 may be driven by the auxiliary drive shaft 84 extending from thelift-side of the gearbox 70. Nevertheless, the left-side and right-sideknotter assemblies 90 may operate independently and at different timesbased on the independent operation of their respective trip mechanisms96.

Upon the bales of crop material being completely formed and tied offwith securement lines, the bales may be ejected from ejection ports ofthe baling chambers 18. In some embodiments, the bales from each of theleft-side and right-side baling chambers 18 will be ejected from thebale discharges of their respective baling chambers 18 in an alternatingfashion. For example, due to the cyclical, reciprocating action of theleft-side and right-side plungers 52, bales of crop material formed inthe left-side baling chamber 18 may be completed in an alternating timeperiods with respect to bales formed in the right-side baling chamber18. As such, the bales of crop material formed in the left-side and theright-side baling chambers 18 may be ejected in an alternating fashion.In different embodiments, the bales of crop material formed in theleft-side baling chamber 18 may be ejected generally simultaneously asbales formed in the right-side baling chambers 18.

Although the invention has been described with reference to the one ormore embodiments illustrated in the figures, it is understood thatequivalents may be employed and substitutions made herein withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention as recited in the claims. Forexample, the baler 10 illustrated and described above may be consideredan “in-line” square baler, wherein the pickup mechanism 22, the stufferchutes 28, the plungers 52, and the baling chambers 18 are orientatedand/or aligned generally along fore-and-aft direction. However, theprinciples of the present invention may be equally applicable to variousother square and rectangular baler designs. For example, it iscontemplated that embodiments of the present invention may utilize apickup mechanism 22 that is offset from (e.g., to one side of) thebaling chambers 18.

Having thus described one or more embodiments of the invention, what isclaimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent includesthe following:

What is claimed is:
 1. A square baler comprising: a gear box configuredto receive power from a rotating power source; first and second driveshaft sections extending outwardly from generally opposite sides of saidgear box, wherein said gear box is configured to rotate said first andsecond drive shaft sections using power from the rotating power source;and first and second reciprocating plungers respectively coupled to saidfirst and second drive shaft sections in a manner such that rotation ofsaid first drive shaft section causes reciprocation of said firstplunger and rotation of said second drive shaft section causesreciprocation of said second plunger.
 2. The square baler of claim 1,wherein said baler is configured to be pulled by a tractor, and whereinthe rotating power source is a power take off (PTO) of the tractor. 3.The square baler of claim 1, wherein said gear box is configured torotate said first and section drive shaft sections at generally equalrates of rotation.
 4. The square baler of claim 1, wherein said firstand section drive shaft sections are configured to rotate on a commonsubstantially horizontal axis of rotation.
 5. The square baler of claim1, further comprising a common drive shaft extending through said gearbox and comprising said first and section drive shaft sections.
 6. Thesquare baler of claim 1, wherein said gearbox comprises an input elementconfigured to be rotated by the rotating power source on an input axisof rotation, wherein said first and second drive shaft sections areconfigured to rotate on respective first and second drive shaft axes ofrotation, and wherein each of said first and second drive shaft axes ofrotation is angled relative to said input axis of rotation by between 60and 120 degrees.
 7. The square baler of claim 1, wherein said first andsecond plungers are located on generally opposite sides of said gearbox.
 8. The square baler of claim 1, wherein each of said first andsecond plungers is configured to reciprocate between an extendedposition and a retracted position, wherein said first and secondplungers are configured to reciprocate alternatively, so that when saidfirst plunger is in the extended position said second plunger is in theretracted position and vice versa.
 9. The square baler of claim 1,wherein said first plunger is coupled to said first drive shaft sectionby a first eccentric connection that is spaced from an axis of rotationof said first drive shaft section, wherein said second plunger iscoupled to said second drive shaft section by a second eccentricconnection that is spaced from an axis of rotation of said first driveshaft section.
 10. The square baler of claim 9, wherein said first andsecond eccentric connections are rotationally offset from one another byabout 180 degrees.
 11. The square baler of claim 9, wherein said firstdrive shaft section includes an auxiliary drive shaft extendingoutwardly past said first eccentric connection, wherein said balercomprises at least one auxiliary driven mechanism directly or indirectlypowered by said auxiliary drive shaft.
 12. The square baler of claim 11,wherein said auxiliary driven mechanism is selected from one or more ofthe following: a pickup assembly, a rotor, a stuffer assembly, and aknotter assembly.
 13. The square baler of claim 1, further comprisingfirst and second bale forming chambers generally aligned with said firstand second plungers, respectively.
 14. The square baler of claim 13,wherein said first and second plungers are configured to reciprocatewithin at least a portion of said first and second bale formingchambers, respectively.
 15. The square baler of claim 13, wherein saidfirst and second bale forming chambers are configured to be fed cropfrom below said first and second bale forming chambers.
 16. The squarebaler of claim 13, wherein said first and second bale forming chambersare positioned side-by-side.
 17. The square baler of claim 13, whereinsaid first and second bale forming chambers are capable of releasingformed bales at different times.
 18. The square baler of claim 1,further comprising first and second knotter assemblies associated withsaid first and second bale forming chambers, respectively, wherein saidfirst and second knotter assemblies are configured to operateindependently of one another so that bales simultaneously formed in saidfirst and second bale forming chambers can be tied off at differenttimes by said first and second knotter assemblies.
 19. A method offorming a plurality of bales of crop material with a high capacitysquare baler, said method comprising the steps of: (a) receiving rotarypower at a gearbox, wherein the gearbox is associated with first andsecond reciprocating plungers positioned on either side of the gearbox;(b) picking up crop material from a single windrow; (c) providing thecrop material to one or more bale forming chambers; (d) using the firstplunger to form a first bale of crop material within the one or morebale forming chambers; and (e) using the second plunger to form a secondbale of crop material within the one or more bale forming chambers. 20.The method of claim 19, wherein the first and second plungers areoperably connected to the gearbox via respective first and section driveshaft sections, wherein during said using of steps (d) and (e), the gearbox rotates the first and section drive shaft sections at generallyequal rates of rotation.
 21. The method of claim 20, wherein during saidreceiving of step (a), the gearbox receives the rotary power via aninput element that rotates on an input axis of rotation, wherein thefirst and second drive shaft sections rotate on respective first andsecond drive shaft axes of rotation, and wherein each of the first andsecond drive shaft axes of rotation is angled relative to the input axisof rotation by between 60 and 120 degrees.
 22. The method of claim 19,wherein during said using of steps (d) and (e), each of the first andsecond plungers is configured to reciprocate between an extendedposition and a retracted position, wherein the first and second plungersare configured to reciprocate alternatively, so that when the firstplunger is in the extended position the second plunger is in theretracted position and vice versa.
 23. The method of claim 19, whereinthe one or more bale forming chambers comprises a first bale formingchamber and second bale forming chamber, and wherein the first andsecond plungers are generally aligned with the first and second baleforming chambers, respectively, such that the first plunger reciprocateswithin the first bale forming chamber and the second plungerreciprocates with the second bale forming chamber.